The S&S thoughts: Sincere and Silly. From the beaches of the Hawaiian shores to the Inland Empire of the Southern California landscape, to the high arches of St. Louis to the cultural history of Memphis, to where I call home now, this is my story, thoughts and hopes.

WoW TONO Thoughts

DEFINED ME ...

Some might say that I am off-the-wall, but I am right-on-the-shelf in the library under unique, Made-in-Hawaii, TONO.--July 2004

GOD'S WISDOM ...

I define true wisdom when God is magnified and glorified through His character. I am privileged to play a role with believers and stories where God and His Son is exalted! For God, be the praise and honor!--August 15, 2009

This turns out to be the #1 personal story of 2009, the pictures and the experience. It was a little more than a full week of FUN with my Sunshine. It might have been cloudy on certain days. But she was there to shine the light on the journey.

We thought we'd share the beauty of the Smoky Mountains. It was our third trip there. We circled the Mountains, and drove through part of the Blue Ridge Parkway.
I will work on the story ... the TONO thoughts later in the week ... in between work!

December 2008

December 31, 2008

Today I noticed that a lot of the publications came
out with their calls for the top 10 stories of 2008. I thought of seven stories that developed
into the ones that impacted me for this year and for the future, as I see it
right now. For a lot of news
organization the economy ranked the number two story across the nation. (I didn’t mention number one because it was
the politics of this year.)

<7>

Following
NASCAR even though we didn’t attend a racetrack.Unlike the previous two years, Aurora and I
didn’t attend a NASCAR racetrack this year, though we followed the season all
year long. 2009 will be an interesting
year with the difficulties of the Big Three making ends meet. NASCAR and teams have laid off employees,
just as Detroit and Toyota has. The
teams will be back with looking for ways to cut cost while the quest for the
champion spirit. Aurora and I will be
following the season as it starts in February.

<6>

Sixty
hours on the road and onto Central Florida for Christmas.From the beginning of the month of December I
looked forward to the drive over 900 miles for no more than a day’s visit with
my in-laws. It’s always an interesting
and comical get-together when I meet up with my in-laws. The only regret that I have is that we
couldn’t stay longer in the area. It
would have been entertaining if we could have stayed longer in the Orlando
area. There are still a few places we
didn’t get to visit, like the multiple parks in the area and the Kennedy Space
Center. If you forgot what they were,
here’s the list: http://n-tono-a-sunshine.typepad.com/hispagetonoway/2008/07/future-travel-i.html

<5>

1st
wedding anniversary visit to the Smoky Mountains.It was Aurora and my third trip visit to the
Mountains. This time we saw some colors
and really liked the contrast between with all the leaves and landscapes. I have posted the highlight pictures on this
Web site.

<4>

Sunshine
meets the Hawaii family and California friends.On my third visit back to the Islands since
leaving in `96, this visit would be very special. I’m glad that my Sunshine’s visit went so
well.

<3>

Graduation
from the company’s management training program.Starting a new job at a new company is always
a big adjustment, getting to know new standards, procedures and more
interesting, getting to know the teammates who I have to work with on a
day-to-day basis.I graduated from the
company that I work at right now in February 2008.Being placed in the unit where I am has been
really demanding.I like enjoy working
for the company because of the structure of its standards.Since then, I have adjusted to the colleagues
and employees who I work with on a daily basis.This companies more than anything else has helped me to improve my
reaction and helped to maintain a professional demeanor in the workplace where
I am supported and not criticized for all my actions.

<2>

Starting
a blog in the month of March 2008.When started, it was the best way
to get my thoughts down and communicated with my friends and family
immediately. I hope that you all have
enjoyed my sincere and silly thoughts—and the pictures. This year I have posted 136 entries; this
would be the 137th. It’s been
quite a year documenting my observations and thoughts.

And .... the number <1> story of the 2008 year ...

Married
through two-plus months to fourteen months, the first year.This is the most challenging lifelong
journey. Marriage is always a challenge
in the present world. The values of this
world just don’t make it easy. The
institution of marriage is about a discovery of one of another. So many questions that need to be asked and
the issue of whether or not they will be answered remains open-ended for a
while or, at times it remains unanswered. It has ever since the end of October 2007, kept me on my toes. And it really is the most humbling experience that I am going through from day-to-day!

Last
night/early this morning, I was planning for the big events of the 2009
year.Considering what I have in mind, I
will have a lot of changing I have in mind, most of them requiring discipline
to a process of accomplishing more than what I did in 2008.You’ll have to come back again on this site
to read what changes are in store.

December 30, 2008

As the 2008 year comes to an end it brings
hope for the new year with a new U.S. President, but it places challenges
unlike any time in modern history for the man whose roots originates from the
island where I grew up for over thirty years.

The economy will be the big drag on any
progress for the entire nation.The consumer
confidence is the lowest it’s been since right after the 1990-91 recession,
home prices are down in the double-digits, and state governments are in the red
for big states like California.For this
year’s Christmas, the International Council of Shopping Centers says that this
season compares to one back in 1970.

I knew with the $700 billion financial
institution bailout that the money wouldn’t be accounted for, as it has.The federal government added another $23
billion to the automobile industry.Just
right after, one of them, Chrysler spends a half-million dollars on advertising
in major market newspaper thanking America for the bailout.

As I have noticed at work in the store that I
along with other managers don’t hold many of the non-performers accountable for
their own actions.It really gets me
upset and mad.It’s my hard-earned money
going to waste.As I have written
before, give me a handout.I know that
would not happen.

Leaders in this world have lost its morality
and the ability to be proactive.I
remember when I attended high school over two years ago, politicians and
business executives talked about a five year plan.It’s too bad that we couldn’t get back into
that type of thinking and mindset.Thinking
back to December 2003 seems to be ancient history now.It’s too bad we can’t be patient as we once
were.Of course, we wouldn’t be players
in the technological advances like text messages and blogs.It seems like with those tools of technology,
it won’t move us to be more moral and proactive.

December 29, 2008

The 2008 year is coming to a close.The 2009 year will be very interesting more
so for the nation than for me individually.There are no weddings, which one of them I’ll play a major part in one,
and there’s no trip to Hawaii.

Looking back, though, I’m working on, right
now, the top seven personal stories of 2008.Does anyone want to guess what stories will make it and what details I’ll
write about?I thought that I would challenge
myself as I did many, many years ago.I
haven’t done it for a long time.

Looking ahead, I thought that there will be a
few important changes for 2009.I
mentioned to my friends and family that I would remember important dates
better.I collected the dates and I
really wasn’t proactive about those dates.I’m still waiting on my 2009 Design-Your-OwnPlanner from Franklin Covey.It’ll be good because it’ll have over 70
pictures in it throughout the year.That
will definitely help.

It’s been a slow month of posting, and I still
haven’t accomplish everything that I wished to do.

I couldn’t believe it.I couldn’t post a blog for some reason from
Florida last week when I was there for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.For one, I didn’t bring my laptop with me on
the sixty hour trip outside of town.I
had my handy Palm 755, however, when I tried to post something it wasn’t able
to do so.Because of that, I have to
resort to posting this after the fact, right now, when I have left Memphis and have
arrived on my first day off after working a few days.

As usual, I tried to post a entry upon arrival
of Florida.I thought it would get sent
through, however, I was having problems connecting to the TypePad server.I noticed that I didn’t have the updated
version on my Palm.I downloaded the
upgrade.I tried to post one on
Christmas Day, however, I still couldn’t connect to the TypePad server.

In summary, it was sixty hours out of our
hometown.Thirty of the hours were spent
on the highways traveling.Another
fifteen was resting and getting ready at the hotel.In all we spent fifteen precious hours with
my parents-in-law.I consider them my
own parents now.

I know that it’s one of the best decisions
that I made, marrying my Sunshine.I
know that it’s a good challenge to improve myself, by making me less selfish
and I gained an interesting family-in-law.It was a good time catching up on stories of the last year.

We were experiencing near 80 degree weather in
December, after leaving home with the temperatures near 40.I was surprised how flatland Central Florida
near Hobe Sound, Florida is.Apparently,
I was told that they have a building limit of four stories for any building in
Martin County, Florida.

Let me say that it’s
the longest I’ve traveled to visit one area in another city.It’ll be one for the books!

December 17, 2008

Many times my wife exclaims, “how many
programs are you watching at the same time?”I would have a picture-in-a-picture (usually two news stations) on the
television from the cable and usually I’m watching a live coverage on the Internet,
whether it’s a local news coverage or during the day when The Strategy Room is
on the `Net.It’s just in my nature.

We finally got our DVD player hooked up last
week.I figured since the first-run of
network season on a break right now, I thought it would be good to watch some
series on the DVD in the meantime.We
found that the most economical way is by signing up on NetFlix.(Any other suggestions?)We started with watching the first season of
Heroes.I remembered some of it, not
much because you know me with details. Next,
we’re going onto Bones first season.

These two days off this week I finished getting
my planner for next year, the 2009 year, set up.I had to enter all the special dates for
everyone.I’ll be on that this
year.I let a lot of stuff fall by the
waste side in the 2008 year.The most
interesting challenge was placing pictures on every monthly tab (all twelve),
and a picture on every week (about 61 of them) that was on the planner.That was interesting selecting from the vast
picture archive that I have.

I’m also keeping an eye on my wife.She’s not been feeling well this week.She almost had pneumonia.Thank goodness she didn’t, but she’s been
resting in bed most of the week.She’s
back to work for half days till Christmas.

The downside is now that I am beginning to
feel under the weather.The near
freezing temperature hasn’t helped lately.

I look forward to my next two days off.Provided that we both feel better, we’ll be
traveling to Florida for a Christmas family get-together.

December 09, 2008

I am
more than concerned now, if I wasn’t before.First, it was $700 billion of taxpayers’ money helping to prop up financial
institutions for faulty mortgages, and now, it’s a failed Big Three automobile
industry for many years read the fine print that their market share was going
south.

I
know that what I’m going to tell you is a little idealistic.But I noticed that assessment on my personality
profiles on eHarmony and in my work life.And there always needs to be something to look forward to wonder about.

In a
country that celebrates its republic government, it’s too bad that we can’t
debate what industries should be secured by the US government.First it was financial institutions.Now, it seems like the auto industry is
next.What industry will be the next
institution asking for a handout?There’s
talk it may be state and local governments, because tax revenue all across the states
are down.

I’m
stating an irony.As you all know, I am
a NASCAR fan.NASCAR depends upon the GM
and Ford to sponsor the sport.You would
think that I would be 100% supportive of helping the Big Three with a
government loan to get out of their dire situations. Not so fast.

I
still would like a full airing in our federal legislative body to debate the
pros and cons of why this money should be spent on to support and loan money to
these industries.However, the rush to
help has dominated to stop the free fall of the national economy.But at what cost are we leading in the long
run?

December 04, 2008

This
is one special weekend no doubt.And
since the weekend it’s been busy, too!It
was Thanksgiving weekend and a birthday all rolled up in one weekend.Usually, I’m off somewhere else during
special occasions like this past weekend with my wife for my birthday
celebration.

But
because of the demands at work, my wife couldn’t get today off so we decided to
hang around our local area.It was still
something special even if we didn’t travel out of town.

Today
it’s been really interesting because both of us are not feeling well.I’ve been walking around the house with a
stiff back and my wife has been feeling really under the weather.She went to work only a half day, and came
home to rest for the rest of the day.

While
I keep an eye on her with my limited mobility, I have been updating my Franklin
Covey planner for the next year.I had
to start all over from scratch because the older version that I saved online
seemed to have disappeared.So I have to
input close to 100 birthdays and anniversaries recorded now.

Thanksgiving
was very special this year.Instead of
going to another person’s home, my Sunshine baked our own ten-plus pound
turkey.We were still eating leftovers
on Monday.It was unique taste of the
rice because it was cooked with the turkey drippings.

Friday
was a work day so there was really nothing that happened that was fun related.There was no visit to a cold amusement
park.I just experienced more drama
where employees just refuse to take responsibility for their own actions.Whenever I coached them about anything that
they were not doing well, they always find others to blame.It’s a sad course of response that I’ve
notice.I still keep on trying to change
their mindset, though.It is all
important because these people are the leaders in the future.

On
Saturday and Sunday, it was a feast time.It was Saturday all-you-can-eat
crab legs and then onto Sunday at Texas de Brazil <http://www.texasdebrazil.com/>
.I have to admit that the latter place was
an interesting experience with its salad bar with white rice, various cheese, fresh-sliced
tomatoes .Getting the samples of different
cuts of meats was very unique by itself.And it was all-you-can-eat!

My
Sunshine and I decided to make the trip to Florida for a couple of days during
Christmas.That should be challenge and
an adventure.I’ll keep you informed
about it.